Published 7:00 pm, Saturday, July 17, 2010

WASHINGTON — Austin may be the state capital and Houston its largest city, but Midland is the epicenter of political contributions in Texas.

Compared to Texas' 10 most populous counties, Midland County's 130,000 residents have given the most money in political donations per capita, according to a Hearst Newspapers review of Federal Election Commission records.

On average, each of Midland's residents gave about $39 in the presidential election cycle of 2007-2008, more than twice the $18 average in second place Travis County (Austin).

In the first 15 months of the 2010 midterm election cycle, Midland leads the state with an average of almost $8 per person, far ahead of runner-up Dallas' $5 per head average. Eighty-five percent of the Midland County contributions has gone to Republican candidates.

The West Texas county serves as the center for oil and natural gas production in the Permian Basin and four of the top 10 employers in Midland are energy-related.

Ernie Angelo, former Midland mayor and a longtime Republican National Committee member, says Midland regularly ranks near the top of lists of generous cities.

"Things they believe in, they're willing to support," he said of his fellow Midlanders, "whether it's a charity or a political cause."

Clayton Williams, a prominent Midland businessman and one-time Texas gubernatorial candidate, said the county's economy "flows with the price of oil." And the current price of oil has been good for Midland — and Midland's favorite political candidates.

Williams has contributed nearly $40,000 in 2010, placing him second to oilman Dale Brown among Midland contributors. He said many people in Midland worry about their economic freedom, and he said he sees political involvement as his responsibility.

"Thomas Jefferson said if you believe in freedom you have to continually fight for it . . . You've got to pay for it," he said. "It falls to us to put it on our shoulders and pay the bills."

In total donations, Midland trails the contributions made by the state's two largest cities, Houston and Dallas. But Midland County, the state's 27th most populous, has consistently placed among the top 10 in absolute dollar amounts, beating much larger counties like Denton and El Paso, both about five times the size of Midland.

In 2008, Midlanders gave $5.2 million, while residents of Denton, a county of 658,616 people, contributed $3.3 million. Among counties of similar size in 2010 — between 100,000 and 250,000 people — only Smith (Tyler) and McLennan (Waco), are close to Midland in their donations.